Total pages in book: 79
Estimated words: 76782 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76782 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Considering the fact that my stomach is already knotted from all the shots and the thought that I’m going to be married within the hour, I reach for the back of an armchair to steady myself.
Fortunately, neither woman notices me.
“Do you have a favorite flower, Gina?” Angel asks with a brush of her fingers over Gina’s hand to grab her attention.
“White carnations,” I answer before Gina can say a thing.
She turns around to face me. “How do you know that?”
I know that because it matters to her, and I never forget anything about Gina.
Years ago, when I was at Calvetti’s, a guy she met for a date handed her a dozen red roses. She smiled and accepted them, but as she walked into the kitchen, I heard her grandmother mention that he already had a strike against him because Gina loves white carnations.
“They are your favorite, right?” I divert by asking my own question.
She nods. “Yes.”
Angel lets out a light laugh. “I thought you’d say red roses. Almost everyone says that, and it’s all Destiny keeps in the cooler.”
Gina’s gaze catches mine for a second. “That’s fine.”
It’s not fine. It’s a failure.
“This is Vegas,” I say. “There has to be a flower shop open that stocks white carnations. I can get some. I’ll find some.”
“No,” Gina protests. “Red roses are fine, Daniel.”
“Gina,” I say her name with a growl in my tone. “I want this to be perfect.”
The corners of her lips edge up toward a grin. “Can I talk to you over there for a second?”
Angel takes the hint. “I’ll go check on the ceremony Destiny is performing now. That will give us an idea of when you two are up.”
We both nod as she wanders past a woman sitting behind a desk before she disappears down a corridor.
Without a word, I offer Gina my hand. She takes it.
“I loved your dad,” she whispers with a tremor in her voice. “He was so good to me, Daniel.”
“I know.” I try to keep it together by swallowing hard. “He was a good man, Gina.”
“I heard him say on that voicemail that he saw you look at me a certain way.” Laughing softly, she shakes her head. “Our parents sometimes see things that aren’t there.”
Not my dad. His instinct was spot-on. He knew before I did that there was something about Gina that made me want to be around her even when she couldn’t seem to stand breathing the same air as me.
“You’ve almost done everything on his wish list.” Her gaze wanders toward the corridor. “I want to help you check off his wish for the two of us, but…”
I can’t listen to her tell me that tomorrow is a new day and most likely will bring massive regret and an annulment.
I bring her hand to my lips and kiss her palm. “But we’ll go back to reality tomorrow.”
She nods. “Let’s honor Marlin tonight.”
“We will.”
She tugs her hand away to raise it in the air before miming a check mark. “Marry the fabulous Gina Calvetti. Check.”
I follow her lead and do the same, adding my own twist. “Marry the handsome, wealthy, and charismatic Daniel Lawton. Check.”
She laughs. “You do know your ego is huge, right?”
I lean closer so I can whisper in her ear, “It’s not the only huge part of me, soon-to-be Mrs. Lawton.”
When she pulls back, her eyes are wide, and her mouth is ajar.
I stare at her, wondering how the hell we reached this point tonight.
“I’m going to need another round of shots when we leave this chapel,” she says. “And then another after that.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Gina
I try to crack open an eyelid, but the effort is too much.
I know a hangover when one has me in its clutches. This one is more like a death grip, and it may finally be the last straw for me.
“I can’t drink anymore,” I whisper, but I don’t think my lips moved.
A loud bang sounds in the distance, so I press my head into the pillow to block my left ear, but another bang filters into my right ear.
“Stop,” I manage to say. “Just stop.”
“Gina!”
I know that voice and the series of loud raps that follow tell me that my brother is in my vicinity.
This feels like a throwback to when I was in high school, and I had too many beers with my best friend.
My mind wanders to her and the promise we made that we’d never lose touch. We did when I went to college, and she went to Europe. She married some random guy she met in Germany and now owns a bakery there.
“Gina! Open the damn door!” Dominick’s voice ends my trip down memory lane.
I finally open one eye far enough to see sunlight filtering into the bedroom of my hotel suite. “What time is it?”
Not expecting a response from anyone, I jump when there’s a murmur next to me.